FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, November 16, 2022
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Ross Sherman, RepresentUs Media Relations Manager, 207-749-2660, rsherman@represent.us
SEATTLE – Seattle will become the third-largest city in the United States to use Ranked Choice Voting (RCV). FairVote Washington declared victory for Proposition 1B Wednesday, with voters approving RCV for primary races for city attorney, mayor and city council races.
“Seattle residents will now have better choices and better representation in city government. Voters will be able to count on elected officials who are more accountable to them, instead of the entrenched political establishment,” said Interim Director of Political Programs Megan Caska. “Credit goes to the Seattle for RCV coalition, which spearheaded this effort from the start. We look forward to continuing RCV’s momentum in Washington and across the country.”
In Seattle’s current primary system, candidates can move on to the general election even if they don’t win a majority of the vote. Under RCV, candidates will be forced to appeal to – and would be accountable to – a wider base of the city’s voters.
Ranked Choice Voting passed nearly everywhere it was on the ballot in the 2022 midterms. Seattle joins Nevada, Portland, Ore., Fort Collins, Colo. and others in adopting a better election system. RepresentUs and its partners have now notched 171 victories that take power away from politicians and give it to the American voters – where it belongs.
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RepresentUs is America’s leading nonpartisan organization fighting to protect and strengthen democracy. We unite unlikely allies from across the political spectrum who put country over party to pass pro-democracy laws, fight corruption, and defeat authoritarian threats. We have won more than 170 victories in cities and states across America since our founding 10 years ago. Each win is one step closer to our vision of making America the world’s strongest democracy.